geekhack

geekhack Community => Off Topic => Topic started by: vivalarevolución on Wed, 03 December 2014, 05:31:58

Title: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: vivalarevolución on Wed, 03 December 2014, 05:31:58
Or should I tell them to get a few title sponsorships from companies they respect and stop begging for money?
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: tp4tissue on Wed, 03 December 2014, 05:51:42
unless you're planning to give them millions of dollars or 100 kilos of cocaine..   just shutup, admit you're cheap..  and move on like the rest of us..    (http://emoticoner.com/files/emoticons/onion-head/embarrassed3-onion-head-emoticon.gif?1292862502)
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: vivalarevolución on Wed, 03 December 2014, 06:01:29
unless you're planning to give them millions of dollars or 100 kilos of cocaine..   just shutup, admit you're cheap..  and move on like the rest of us..   
Show Image
(http://emoticoner.com/files/emoticons/onion-head/embarrassed3-onion-head-emoticon.gif?1292862502)


It's on principle.  They could be funded with a few sponsors, probably.  But they beg.

I would like to see their financial statements and operating expenses.

EDIT: nevermind, I found the financials with a minute of searching.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: tp4tissue on Wed, 03 December 2014, 06:07:29
unless you're planning to give them millions of dollars or 100 kilos of cocaine..   just shutup, admit you're cheap..  and move on like the rest of us..   
Show Image
(http://emoticoner.com/files/emoticons/onion-head/embarrassed3-onion-head-emoticon.gif?1292862502)


It's on principle.  They could be funded with a few sponsors, probably.  But they beg.

I would like to see their financial statements and operating expenses.

EDIT: nevermind, I found the financials with a minute of searching.

hell, if they wanted to... there are billions of sponsors ready and willing...


But look what happened to Overclock.net  and  Head-fi..
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: fohat.digs on Wed, 03 December 2014, 07:22:40
YES

I love wikipedia and use it all the time. I have even contributed a couple of small articles.

Keep it free and open and neutral.

Don't let them junk it up and pollute it with garbage!

Everybody should just pony up $1-$5 every year and that would do it.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: vivalarevolución on Wed, 03 December 2014, 07:47:26
I can understand why wikipedia might be wary of allowing sponsors.  You throw up some banner ads, readers can see you are getting advertising cash, and readers might have less incentive to donate because they see commercial revenue flowing in.  All of a sudden, the website is dependent upon advertisers, whom might start dictating content, and then the original guiding philosophy of the website is lost.

I looked through their fundraising and financials.  They seem to have many ideas bouncing around.  Glad to know that begging is not the sole funding strategy.

Actually, rather than complaining here, I should shoot them an email to see what's up with their fundraising philosophy.

Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: Findecanor on Wed, 03 December 2014, 08:50:41
I donated once $500 a couple of years ago, when I had more money. Wikipedia is important and useful.

Lately I have been mostly angry about a couple of cases when I wanted to rectify an error on a page about something I knew a lot about and it was too difficult. One page was closed from editing for reasons that are totally bull****.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: 0100010 on Wed, 03 December 2014, 09:05:43
I usually send in the minimum $3 when asked.  Their banner says "If we all gave $3, the fundraiser would be over within an hour."  Three bucks is trivial to me.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: fohat.digs on Wed, 03 December 2014, 10:02:23

Lately I have been mostly angry about a couple of cases when I wanted to rectify an error on a page about something I knew a lot about and it was too difficult.


I uploaded 2 articles on people who deserved an entry, in my opinion.

One was a "B" actress from the 1930s-40s who was my second cousin (my father's first cousin). She chose a rather bland screen name, so finding and cross-referencing her is difficult for someone who does not know. She died in the 1950s and my father died in the 1990s, so my information, while excellent, was not all easily verifiable.

The other was a 2nd-tier writer (at least half a dozen books and several dozen magazine articles) who grew up in my home town and went to high school with my mother. I was not allowed to use a photo taken by my father, since I could not prove that I owned it legitimately.

In both cases, the articles were allowed, but edited, and I got a torrent of questions and criticisms from the moderators. I understand that there is a need for accuracy and cross-checking, but I see it as a work in progress that begins in the prototype stages and grows and evolves over time.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: iri on Wed, 03 December 2014, 12:02:32
I donated once $500 a couple of years ago, when I had more money. Wikipedia is important and useful.

Lately I have been mostly angry about a couple of cases when I wanted to rectify an error on a page about something I knew a lot about and it was too difficult. One page was closed from editing for reasons that are totally bull****.
Climate change?
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: vivalarevolución on Wed, 03 December 2014, 12:53:09
I donated once $500 a couple of years ago, when I had more money. Wikipedia is important and useful.

Lately I have been mostly angry about a couple of cases when I wanted to rectify an error on a page about something I knew a lot about and it was too difficult. One page was closed from editing for reasons that are totally bull****.
Climate change?

No, it was the page about the best keyboard switch.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: iri on Wed, 03 December 2014, 13:10:33
b-but wikipedia has no page named "panda clears"
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: C5Allroad on Wed, 03 December 2014, 15:53:33
The thing is, I rarely go on Wikipedia. Why? All teachers say it's an invalid source for citation.

But people should donate if they regularly use it  :p

(http://i.imgur.com/6wtfZVc.gif)
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: Smasher816 on Wed, 03 December 2014, 16:07:57
The thing is, I rarely go on Wikipedia. Why? All teachers say it's an invalid source for citation.

But people should donate if they regularly use it  :p

Show Image
(http://i.imgur.com/6wtfZVc.gif)


Sure you might not be able to cite wikipedia itself. But you can go to its citations and find some good stuff. Just find a .edu, scientific article, etc - whatever level the teacher wants. I'v heard Google scholar is also good.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: Puddsy on Wed, 03 December 2014, 16:08:14
if i like something i'll throw them like $10 or something

wikipedia included
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: SamirD on Wed, 03 December 2014, 16:20:54
I won't.  The guy who founded wikipedia is from the town I've spend a good portion of my life in, Huntsville, Alabama.  When asked by the local chamber of commerce if he would come speak to a small group of local small business owners about social media, he gave a ridiculous answer like, 'yeah, for $45,000'.  What an ass.  I'll look up articles somewhere else if need be.  Wikipedia isn't the end all and be all.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: HoffmanMyster on Wed, 03 December 2014, 16:46:17
The thing is, I rarely go on Wikipedia. Why? All teachers say it's an invalid source for citation.

It is not a reference and it has never claimed to be.  It is a source of abundant information, backed up by proper references.  You just need to be smart about where the information is coming from, which is a good rule in general.

I won't.  The guy who founded wikipedia is from the town I've spend a good portion of my life in, Huntsville, Alabama.  When asked by the local chamber of commerce if he would come speak to a small group of local small business owners about social media, he gave a ridiculous answer like, 'yeah, for $45,000'.  What an ass.  I'll look up articles somewhere else if need be.  Wikipedia isn't the end all and be all.

Meh.  While I think it would be super cool if he did it for free, I can't fault someone who owns such a massive entity to give up their free time.  I'm sure his time is incredibly valuable. 
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: fohat.digs on Wed, 03 December 2014, 16:59:32

When asked by the local chamber of commerce if he would come speak to a small group of local small business owners


When our company started up my boss joined the Chamber of Commerce for the sake of credibility and because it was cheap.

I had never really paid attention to it before, but when I realized what a stool they are for the radical-right attack dogs, I was appalled.

He should have asked for $450,000

But it would have been better if he had refused outright on grounds of conscience.

Just my opinion.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: C5Allroad on Wed, 03 December 2014, 17:27:16
The thing is, I rarely go on Wikipedia. Why? All teachers say it's an invalid source for citation.

But people should donate if they regularly use it  :p

Show Image
(http://i.imgur.com/6wtfZVc.gif)


Sure you might not be able to cite wikipedia itself. But you can go to its citations and find some good stuff. Just find a .edu, scientific article, etc - whatever level the teacher wants. I'v heard Google scholar is also good.
I forgot about Google scholar...
I'll use that on my next paper lol.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: C5Allroad on Wed, 03 December 2014, 18:51:27
The thing is, I rarely go on Wikipedia. Why? All teachers say it's an invalid source for citation.

It is not a reference and it has never claimed to be.  It is a source of abundant information, backed up by proper references.  You just need to be smart about where the information is coming from, which is a good rule in general.

I won't.  The guy who founded wikipedia is from the town I've spend a good portion of my life in, Huntsville, Alabama.  When asked by the local chamber of commerce if he would come speak to a small group of local small business owners about social media, he gave a ridiculous answer like, 'yeah, for $45,000'.  What an ass.  I'll look up articles somewhere else if need be.  Wikipedia isn't the end all and be all.

Meh.  While I think it would be super cool if he did it for free, I can't fault someone who owns such a massive entity to give up their free time.  I'm sure his time is incredibly valuable.

It was always frowned upon lol.
But, I do like wiki for chemistry.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronegativities_of_the_elements_(data_page)
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molar_ionization_energies_of_the_elements
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oxidation_states_of_the_elements
Those 3 have helped me a lot in recent weeks.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: Arcoril on Thu, 04 December 2014, 17:46:56
I've spent countless hours randomly reading articles on wikipedia and I realized that I've never given them any money for that bandwidth and server time. I threw $20 at them and I'd do it again.
Title: Re: Should I donate to Wikipedia?
Post by: vivalarevolución on Fri, 05 December 2014, 07:52:49
Okay, I'm going to donate.  Somebody buy my stuff for sale and throw the money in my Paypal account, and make it easier for me.